Search

A Congressional Budget Office report explores the complexities of rising homeowners insurance costs and suggests strategies to manage the expense. The report highlights the discrepancy between the record-setting number of natural disasters that cost $1 billion or more and the decrease in total related expenses. The report suggests that the unpredictable nature of disaster costs makes it challenging for regulated insurers to budget and pass those costs onto clients. It proposes alternative strategies such as additional insurance flexibility, bulk purchases by community groups or local governments, and an expanded federal role in the market beyond flood coverage. The report acknowledges the ongoing debate around reforms to the federal flood insurance program and emphasizes the importance of pricing in determining the feasibility of an expanded federal role. [Extracted from the article]

Mr. Cooper, a publicly traded nonbank, has temporarily slowed down its mortgage servicing rights (MSR) activity due to a combination of buy- and sell-side issues. The company's Chairman and CEO, Jay Bray, stated that they have been sitting on the sidelines and letting aggressive buyers bid on deals. However, Mr. Cooper still has flexibility to pursue MSR assets with great returns. The slowdown in the MSR market is attributed to a decrease in deal flow and slower originations. Despite the temporary pullback, Mr. Cooper expects a robust year in 2025 and anticipates increased demand for its Rushmore and Xome units in the event of a difficult credit cycle. [Extracted from the article]

A proposal to modernize Regulation X, a servicing rule, has received support from the housing industry and consumer advocacy groups. However, there are concerns about certain aspects of the proposal. One sticking point is the operational requirements related to borrowers with limited English proficiency, as there is a lack of clarity regarding language preferences. Additionally, industry groups oppose a fee ban for distressed borrowers. A coalition of 10 groups has expressed these concerns in a letter and recommends the removal of the marketing section. The Housing Policy Council also suggests making a distinction between "retention" and "disposition" options for borrowers in dual tracking situations. [Extracted from the article]

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has released new guidance on how the existing Nationwide Mortgage Licensing System (NMLS) can help nonbank mortgage companies manage the implementation process for the new CFPB nonbank registry. The guidance explains how firms can input data, including their NMLS number, into the portal that the bureau plans to open on October 16. While the coordination between the CFPB and NMLS will provide some time savings, mortgage companies should still budget time for the implementation process. However, the guidance does not address broader implications and concerns about the growing regulatory imbalance between federal and state banking authorities. [Extracted from the article]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has dropped its investigation into allegations that Zillow Group Inc. violated Section 8 of the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act. Zillow 'received [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock The jury's still out on whether bank account data is a viable alternative to the tedious process of contacting employers to verify a mortgage applicant's job status. [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock Black Knight has acquired HeavyWater, a developer of artificial intelligence and machine learning technology for the mortgage industry, and plans to incorporate the startup's borrower data verification [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock Capital One Financial Corp. plans to repurchase shares following the sale of $17 billion in mortgages to a Credit Suisse subsidiary. Capital One, which is exiting the [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock Fannie Mae's first-quarter profits were enough for it to rebuild its minimum capital buffer and pay the Treasury Department dividend after being forced to take a draw [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock Banks would welcome a proposal to loosen Basel III capital restrictions because it would make holding mortgage servicing rights easier and stem the recent exodus of depositories [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock Servicers are still trying to figure out how they can best take advantage of the growing use of electronic notes and other digital mortgage tools by lenders [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock Given housing inventory shortages that have created fierce competition for homes, new-construction purchase lending has been hot almost everywhere except the reverse mortgage market. While more than [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock Ocwen Financial Corp.'s $360 million bid to buy PHH Corp. is intended to alleviate a multitude of regulatory and financial strains that have plagued both companies for [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock Ocwen Financial Corp.'s $360 million acquisition of PHH Corp. presents an opportunity for the nonbank servicer to rebuild scale that's been diminished by years of regulatory restrictions [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock Government bond market fluctuations have renewed concerns about rising mortgage rates and may prompt borrowers to take more notice of what mortgage lenders are charging on a [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock Michael DeVito, who was named Wells Fargo's interim head of home lending after the bank fired consumer lending head Franklin Codel, is now officially leading the residential [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock Sexual harassment in housing finance has been drastically underreported. More than 70% of women in the industry indicated they have had at least one experience that met [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock The long-running slide in mortgage payments 60 or more days past due will continue next year, according to TransUnion's consumer lending forecast. Serious mortgage delinquencies are on [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock The government-sponsored enterprises are finally getting the green light to return to the low-income housing tax credit market, but they must stay within certain investment limits as [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock Despite digital mortgage advances, borrowers think it still takes too long to get a loan, J.D. Power finds in its annual customer satisfaction ranking of originators. The [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock Expected losses from the recent hurricanes put a dent in Fannie Mae's third-quarter earnings and the mortgage agency is keeping a close eye on how its servicers [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock Nonbanks made the majority of the purchase and refinance loans in the market during 2016 for the first time in decades, according to annual Home Mortgage Disclosure [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock Head of PNC Real Estate, PNC Financial Services Group Leadership is not about being the loudest voice in the room, it's about listening. That's Diana Reid's philosophy, [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock As communities along the Texas coastline brace for Hurricane Harvey, the mortgage industry is making preparations of its own. For pending loan closings and home sales, mortgage [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock Home equity lines of credit would normally thrive in a market with rising prices and where many older homeowners are loath to sell. But HELOC activity is [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock Rising interest rates have slowed a recent run of unexpectedly high prepayments of government-insured mortgages, making servicing rights for loans held in Ginnie Mae securities more attractive [...]

The recent increase in property insurance costs has implications for housing finance, particularly in terms of servicing valuations. Higher insurance premiums can add to escrowed funds that servicers can earn money on, but they can also lead to affordability issues for borrowers. Servicers may be able to earn money from funds held in escrow, but some states have rules that require the distribution of the float benefit to the borrower, which can diminish the net benefit of float. Higher insurance rates can put pressure on borrowers, potentially leading to prepayment behavior and relocation. Additionally, lender-placed insurance, which may be used if borrowers do not get their own insurance, can weaken the borrower's finances in the event of a disaster. Overall, valuations of mortgage servicing rights should consider borrower behavior and the potential impact of higher insurance costs. [Extracted from the article]

According to a preliminary analysis by Kroll Bond Rating Agency, the new credit scoring model being considered by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac produces higher credit scores for the same loans compared to current models. The analysis found that the Vantagescore 4.0 had a non-zero weighted average of 769 for loans purchased by the government-sponsored enterprises between 2013 and 2021, while the comparable averages using "classic" FICO scores were 753 and 754. The findings could help stakeholders understand the upcoming credit score transition and make informed decisions. The report also highlights the complexities and nuances of different scoring models. [Extracted from the article]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock Some Ginnie Mae issuers and warehouse lenders have been gun-shy about entering financing arrangements for mortgage servicing rights because of concerns about the legal agreements Ginnie requires [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock The surge in mortgage rates since the November election is expected to offset the increase to lenders' short-term funding costs following the Federal Open Markets Committee's 25-basis-point [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock Removing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac from government control, as Treasury Secretary-designate Steven Mnuchin would like to, could mean the two entities will do more to compete [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock, Kevin Wack The Federal Communications Commission has denied the Mortgage Bankers Association's request for exemption from part of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act requiring servicers to get [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock, Jacob Passy Any plans President-elect Donald Trump may have for tax reform don't include cutting the mortgage interest deduction, according to a member of Trump's economic advisory [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock Fannie Mae's new representation and warranty relief offers lenders a long-awaited incentive to use its automated loan validation technology. But is it enough for lenders to make [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock BOSTON -- There has been a recent decline in the number of investors actively buying Ginnie Mae servicing rights, an asset some nonbank mortgage companies use to [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock BOSTON -- Fannie Mae is planning to provide relief to lenders from potential buybacks for loans in which the borrower's income, assets and employment information have been [...]

Byline: Austin Kilgore, Bonnie Sinnock Fannie Mae is preparing to offer immediate representation and warranty relief to lenders that use its suite of automated quality-assurance technology. The benefit will be [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock Talk about jumping the gun. Equifax and TransUnion have stopped offering traditional credit reports, replacing them with the more expensive trended credit reports that Fannie Mae plans [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock As if high default costs haven't been challenging enough for mortgage servicers, a growing number of seriously delinquent loans are Federal Housing Administration products, which require significant [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock The deadline has arrived for mandatory submissions to the Federal Housing Administration's Electronic Appraisal Delivery portal, but as many as one-third of lenders that originate FHA-insured mortgages [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock When a consumer refinances or pays off her house in preparation for moving, you might expect her to reduce other debts to help get the new mortgage [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock Freddie Mac's burgeoning efforts to offload credit exposure to private investors through its innovative risk-sharing transactions highlight a growing tension between its financial results and regulatory risk [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock Ginnie Mae is mulling whether to guarantee a new type of securitized-loan pool. It plans to conduct a test run made up entirely of modified and reperforming [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock After imposing a virtual moratorium on adding new issuers, Ginnie Mae is again accepting applications from mortgage companies seeking to pool loans for securitization and servicing. Ginnie [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau openly acknowledged that the transition to new mortgage-disclosure requirements presents a major challenge for lenders, saying it will give them some leeway [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock Stop complaining, and start doing something about it. That is the mantra of more and more mortgage servicers worried about the long-term harm to their business from [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock First-time buyers have been returning as credit has eased slightly and rental rates have increased, boosting housing demand and helping lenders increase their volume. But without sufficient [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock Remember strategic defaulters, those homeowners who walked away from their underwater mortgages even though they could still afford their loans? They're back, this time as prospective borrowers. [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock The sweeping overhaul of the Federal Housing Administration's single-family handbook offers lenders long-sought clarity on acceptable underwriting practices. But that added certainty comes at the expense of [...]

Byline: Bonnie Sinnock Fannie Mae was affected by the same derivatives accounting mismatch that led to Freddie Mac's first quarterly loss in four years. But its bulk and balance sheet [...]